Arizona’s Open Carry Laws

This article is meant to take a look at Arizona’s open carry laws so that you folks can get a better idea what is and is not legal in the state.

According to Arizona’s state constitution, individual citizens have the ability to bear arms in self-defense. Arizona’s gun laws are more lenient than many other states, allowing most law-abiding adults in the state to carry firearms, either openly or concealed. No special permit is required for either, in the state. In fact, any person 21 years of age or older, may carry a weapon openly or concealed without the need for a license. However, if you are going to carry without a license, you must comply with the demands of any police officer who asks if you are carrying a deadly weapon. This only takes effect if the officer has specifically stopped you for a reason, such as a traffic stop, or for questioning.

According to state law, nobody, unless specifically authorized by law, can enter a public establishment or attend a public event carrying a firearm if the operator of the establishment or the sponsor of the event asks them to remove their firearm and place it in the custody of the operator or sponsor. However, this doesn’t apply to shooting ranges or shooting events.

As for private property, the rules are a little more pro-gun owner. The law states that a property owner, tenant, employer, or business entity shall not establish, maintain or enforce a policy or rule that prohibits a person from lawfully transporting or lawfully storing any firearm that is in the person’s locked and privately owned vehicle. The firearm cannot be visible during this time, however.

As for hunters, the rules are pretty cut and dry. Stating that any hunter in the field may carry a handgun for self-defense but they cannot use the handgun for the taking of wildlife.

Now, there are certainly additional questions as well as more in-depth looks into such things as who is not allowed to possess a gun, and what public places do or do not allow them. We will be going over those in specific articles, later on, due to the complexity of some of the situations, but for right now, we have a wonderful FAQ page on our Arizona site with a lot of helpful information.

If you have specific questions that you would like covered in future articles about Arizona’s open carry laws, shoot us a comment below, and we will make sure to add them to future reports.

Information for this article was compiled from the NRA and Arizona state law books.

About Jacob Paulsen

Jacob S. Paulsen is the President of ConcealedCarry.com. ConcealedCarry.com provides in-person and online firearm training for American gun owners. The Company is currently teaching in-person classes in 25+ states with a team of more than 55 instructors. Jacob is a NRA certified instructor & Range Safety Officer, USCCA certified instructor and training counselor, Utah BCI instructor, Affiliate instructor for Next Level Training, and a Glock and Sig Sauer Certified Armorer. He resides in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado with his wife and children.